POLS 340 Exam III Vocabulary

public policy

(1) the organizing framework of purposes and rationales for government programs that deal with specified societal problems; (2) the complex of programs enacted and implemented by governments

symbolic actions

proposals for policy changes that serve some limited political purpose, but do not threaten the current situation

distributive policies

policy actions that deliver widespread benefits to individuals or groups who often do not bear the costs directly

redistributive policies

efforts by governments to shoft the allocation of valued goods in society frmo one group to another

regulatory policies

establish restrictions on the behavior of those subject to the regulations, aim to protect certain groups, range broadly in scope, and are foten enforced against businesses

self-regulatory policies

protective regulations that either advantage certain professions or classes or remove from the government the power to regulate

partnerships

government-funded programs involving a wider range of participants

contracting out

practive under which private-sector contractors provide designated goods or services to governments, or to individual agencies, for an agreed-on fee

no-bid (or limited-competition) contracts

government goods and services contracts awarded to private firms with limited or no competition

securities and exchange commission

national government regulatory agency responsible for regulation of stocks, securities, and investments

internal revenue service

responsible for administration of national government tax policy, enforcement of tax codes, and collection of tax revenue frmo individuals and corporations

planning and analysis

process of deliberately defining and choosing the oeprational goals of an organization, analyzing alternative choices for resource distribution, and choosing methods to achieve those goals over a specified time period

operational goal

specific and measurable goal for organizational attainment

strategic planning

process used by organizations to formulate a mission statement

policy analysis

systematic investigation of alternative policy options and the assembly and integration of evidence for and against each

operations research

set of specific decision-making and analytical tools used in systems theory, modeling, and quantitative research to determine how best to utilize resources

program implementation

general political and governmental process of carrying out programs in order to fulfill specified policy objectives; a responsibility chiefly of adminsitrative agencies, under chief-executive and/or legislative guidance

program evaluation and review technique

management technique of program implementation in which the sequence of steps for carrying out a project or program is mapped out in advance; involves choosing necessary activities and estimating time and other resources required

critical path method

management approach to program implementation in which a manager attempts to assess the resource needs of different paths of action, and to identify the “critical path” with the smallest margin of extra resources needed to complete all assigned program activities

management by objectives

management technique designed to facilitate goal and priority setting, development of plans, resource allocation, monitoring progress toward goals, evaluating results, and generating and implementing improvements in performance

high-stakes testing

national government requirement that requires states without compensation to develop standardized testing in order to rank students and maintain national government funding

charter schools

publicly funded, privately operated K-12 schools

program evaluation

systematic examination of government actions, policies, or programs to determine their success or failure

before-versus-after studies

evaluation and comparison of results before and after program implementation to determine what results, if any, were achieved

time-trend projection

comparison of preprorgram data with actual post-program data

controlled experimentation

involves comparisons of two groups of similar people, one served by the program and another (control group) not served or served differently; the most expensive and least practiced form of evaluation

government accountability office

investigative arm of Congress that helps Congress oversee national government programs and operations to ensure accountability through a variety of activities

free market competition

basis of U.S. and other free-enterprise economic systems in which the means of production and distribution of goods and services are owned by private corporations or individuals, and the government;s role in the economy is minimal

government regulation

government activity designed to monitor and guide private economic competition; specific actions have included placing limits on producers’ prices and practices, and promoting commerce through grants or subsidies

monopolistic practices

situation in which a certain company or group of companies controls the production and distribution system of a market to exclude all other competitors

antitrust laws

antitrust actions are specific law enforcement decisions affecting one company regarding one set of activities deemed to be monopolistic

administrative law

important body of U.S. law pertaining to the legal authority of public administrative entities to perform their duties, and to the limits necessary to control those agencies

regulatory body

all types of dependent and independent regulatory baords, commissions, and executive entities with regulatory authority

sherman antitrust act

first major antitrust legislation, passed in 1890, which made it illegal to fix prices or to monopolize an industry

justice department

cabinet-level executive agency responsible for the enforcement of national law

federal trade commission

independent regulatory commission charged with enforcing antitrust acts to protect consumers against unfair trade practices

clayton act

1914 law that prohibits price discrimination to eliminate competition or create a monopoly

sarbanes-oxley act of 2002

created to protect investors by improving the accuracy and reliability of corporate disclosures

social regulatory initiatives

government actions that regulate new social areas involving individual health, environmental protection, and public safety

administrative procedure act of 1946

law on which all national government administrative procedures are based

protective regulation

advantages certain groups or individuals by granting special access or licenses

deregulation

strategy to reduce or remove governmetn regulations on private economic activity

dependent regulatory agencies

regulaotry units or subdivisions of executive agencies

rulemaking

quasi-legislative power delegated to agencies by Congress; a rule issued under this authority represents an agency statement of general applicability and future effect that concerns the rights of private parties, and has the force and effect of law

adjudication

quasi-judicial power delegated to agencies by Congress, under which agencies apply existing laws or rules to particular situations, in case-by-case decision making

adminsitrative law judge

member of the executive branch who performs quasi-judicial functions

advisory opinion

one means used by some U.S. regulatory entities to secure voluntary compliance with regulatory requirements; invovles issuance of a memorandum indicating how the entity would decide an issue if it were presented formally

consent order

one means used by some U.S. regulatory entities to secure voluntary compliance with regulatory requirements; involves a formal agreement between the entity and an industry or industries in which the latter agree to cease a practice in return for the regulatory entity’s dropping punitive actions aimed at the practice

common cause

a nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy organization throgh which citizens make their voices heard in the political process and try to hold their elected leaders accountable to the public interest

dodd-frank wall street reform and consumer protection act

legislation aimed at changing the American financial regulatory environment and affecting all national government financial regulatory agencies and nearly every aspect of the nation’s financial services industry

procedural fairness

ensures fairness in the adjudication process

procedural due process

legal term that refers to the legal rules governing a specific case

commerce clause

clause in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution that empowers Congress to regulate interstate commerce and commerce with foreign countries and that forms the constitutional basis for much national government regulation

non-delegation doctrine

a corollary of the separation of powers doctrine, a principle in administrative law that Congress cannot delegate its legislative powers to other entities

“elastic” clause

a statement in the U.S. Constitution (Article I, Section 8) granting Congress the power for carrying out the enumerated list of powers

reregulation

decision by Congress or an administrative agency to strengthen or reestablish government regulatory requirements

results oriented

government programs that focus on performance in exchange for granting greater discretionary decision-making power to managers

productivity

measurable relationship between the results produced and the resources required for production; quantitative measure of the efficiency of the organization

performance management

results-driven decision making that attempts to link goal achievement with budgetary allocations

web 3.0

the third generation of internet services for websites applications that focuses on using a machine-based understanding of data to provide a data-driven and semantic web

working capital funds

a type of revolving fund used to finance oerpations that function like commercial business activities

technology modernization fund

an innovative funding source that gives national government agencies additional ways to deliver services more quickly, better secure sensitive systems and data, and use taxpayer dollars more efficiently

legacy systems

any information or organizational system based on outdated technologies but critical to day-to-day operations

new public service

government service based upon the view that democratic theory and definitions of the public interest should result from a dialogue and deliberation about shared values

customer-service standards

explicit standards of service quality published by national government agencies and aprt of the reinventing government initiative

fraud reduction and data analytics act

improves national government agency financial and administrative controls and procedures to assess and mitigate fraud risks, and to improve national government agencies’ development and use of data analytics for the purpose of identifying, preventing, and responding to fraud

benchmarking

quality and productivity improvement methodology that examines those organizations that are best at performing a certain process or set of processes and then transplanting the methods into one’s own organization

claim-and-blame strategy

situation in which politicians “blame” bureaucrats and bureaucrats “claim” not o have the authority to act

chief information officers

high-level corporate or governmental officials responsible for the maintenance of communications and information technology systems in public or private organizations

chief technology officer

focuses on overall technology policy and innovation strategies across national government agencies and departments

cheif digital officer

top managers typically tasked with initiating, conducting, and accelerating digital transformation across industries and countries

performance assessment rating tool

management “scorecard” used to rate the performance of national government executive agencies

dashboards

a data visualization tool available on computers and smart phones that allows all users to understand the analytics that matter to their businesses, departments, or projects

citizen relationship management

strategy focusing on providing citizens timely, consistent, responsive access to government information and services using internet links

portal

single entry site for access to, and information about, a specific topic containing numerous links to other related websites

citizen-centric

an attribute of public-policy decision making focused on meeting the needs of citizens

digital divide

differential knowledge about available technology caused by inequalities in education, income, and access to computers and the internet